Phones often play an audible sound upon receipt of an incoming call. For example, the phone may play a ring tone to a user of the phone to indicate the presence of the incoming call. In mobile phones, the ring tone is a computer program stored in the memory of the mobile phone. The ring tone indicates what audible sound the speaker system of the phone should play when the phone receives an incoming call. Ring tone capable phones have a range of notes stored in memory. The ring tone indicates which of these notes to play to achieve the desired audible sound. Different ring tones produce different audible sounds by adjusting the order, speed, and number of the notes.
Mobile phones are often delivered to a user with a limited number of ring tones stored in memory. Additional ring tones may be downloaded by the user of the mobile phone to personalize the ringing sound of the phone. In one example, the user of the mobile phone may type in the program code of the additional ring tone into the phone using the keypad. In another example, the user of the mobile phone may order the additional ring tone from a website that sends the ring tone to the phone over the airwaves. For example, the ring tone is sent in a message to the mobile phone, such as in a short message service message, an enhanced messaging service message, or a multimedia messaging service message.
The user of the mobile phone installs the ring tone onto the phone for subsequent use for incoming calls. The user of the mobile phone authorizes the phone to use the ring tone. For example, the user of the mobile phone must authorize and assign the ring tone for the ring tone to be eligible for active use by the phone. As one shortcoming, the user of the called mobile phone has exclusive control over the ring tones played over the speaker of the phone for incoming calls.
In addition to being played over a speaker to the called party for incoming calls, customized audible sounds may be played in a voice path to the calling party. A ringback tone service allows a called party to preselect a ringback tone to be played in the earpiece of the calling party phone. Traditionally, the calling party would hear a standard ringing sound before the called party answers the call. The ringback tone service replaces that standard ringing sound with a ringback tone selected by the called party. For example, the ringback tone service allows the user of the called communication device to customize the ringing sound that the calling party hears while calling the called party. As one shortcoming, the ringback tone service does not play customized ring tones to the called party.
Thus, a need exists for enhanced control of ring tones played to a called party for incoming calls.